I can't stop with the PS5; I have already strongly argued that the PS5 is my favorite gaming console of all time. I have stated my love for this console in the past, and even claimed earlier this year that it was actually an underrated console.

Despite this, the PS5 has one feature that I rarely use to this day: rest mode. This is not because I don't find it useful to be able to interrupt games or download updates in the background, but because for many users, myself included, this feature has caused hardware problems, so I rarely use rest mode.

You don't have to look far to find PS5 users complaining about problems with rest mode; there are videos on YouTube warning people to never put their consoles in suspend, and on Reddit why this feature causes problems on some consoles, There are threads with hundreds of comments posted trying to get to the bottom of it, and even reports by major media outlets outlining the teething problems.

Of course, for every person who claims that rest mode has caused their console to crash or corrupt saved data, there is someone who counters that they have been in rest mode every night since they bought their PS5 at launch and have had no problems. In other words, at worst, the problem seems to affect only some game consoles.

Trying to figure out what the exact problem is and what is causing it can be quite tricky. Whispers on the Internet seem to suggest a variety of glitches, and each user's experience is different. However, after some research and from my own personal experience, here's what's wrong with PS5 rest mode.

A quick search of Internet forums will quickly reveal players reporting a variety of problems with the PS5 rest mode. These problems range from things like DualSense input not being recognized after the console is brought back from suspend, to serious technical failures like hardware crashes that require the system to be rebuilt in safe mode.

I have personally had two painful experiences with the PS5's rest mode that have scared me away from using this feature; the first was a few weeks after launch, when I connected a USB storage drive and attempted to download a game. The first time was a few weeks after its launch, when I connected a USB storage drive and tried to download a game. The moment I tried to boot it from rest mode to check the game's download status, the console crashed.

This experience (along with similar testimonials online) discouraged me from using this feature for a while. However, last month, when I played the PS5 exclusive "Returnal" for review, I was forced to use the rest mode because "Returnal" does not have a traditional save function.

For the majority of my playthrough, I was able to interrupt the game and resume from where I left off without issue, but during one session, when I booted the console out of rest mode, the game froze after about a minute.

Are the two connected? Maybe not, but this experience has made me hesitant to put the console in suspend mode again, as there is no end to the number of users complaining of similar problems.

This is a big question, and perhaps one that only Sony can answer definitively. Online, theories abound as to why several PS5 owners have experienced problems in rest mode.

In the first weeks of its release, many believed the problem was related to a specific game. In particular, "Spider-Man: Miles Morales" seemed to be causing a small number of gamers to crash when trying to suspend the game.

Some users also reported rest mode issues after the PS5's enhanced storage capabilities, which some believed was related to having an extended USB drive connected to the console. This, as mentioned, is an area in which I have personal experience.

Perhaps most frustratingly, Sony has not officially commented on these reported rest mode issues. Some sources claim that they have now been corrected, but anecdotal evidence suggests otherwise. Tom's Guide has contacted Sony about potential problems with rest mode and will update this article as soon as we receive a response.

Presumably the problem only affects a very small number of PS5 systems, but we hope that Sony will clarify the situation. There have been several system updates since launch, but none of the patch notes mention addressing the rest mode issue, which is disappointing.

Of course, for the vast majority of PS5 owners, rest mode seems to be a useful feature that works as intended, but it is unfortunate that the situation remains so unclear for the few users who are still cautious about using the feature.

Nevertheless, we would highly recommend the PS5 to anyone looking for a new gaming console. Of course, buying one now is easier said than done, so be sure to bookmark our PS5 restocking hub as soon as the latest availability information becomes available.